U.S. Auto Sales By Brand – January 2011

As it was in January of 2010, so let it be in January 2011. Chevrolet, the number two brand in America in 2010, started out this year with a strong 19.1% improvement over January 2010 to be tops among all U.S. car brands in January.

Most striking in this report is the lack of red font. Plus signs are just about everywhere, while Mazda, Lexus, Chrysler, and Lincoln are the most prominent brands to post lower sales in January 2011 than in January 2010. Mercedes-Benz was America’s best-selling luxury auto brand last month on 14% gains which saw Lexus fall 4413 sales behind. Mercedes’ total includes 875 Sprinters.

As for General Motors, four brands present in last January’s report are missing now. Not a single Saturn, Hummer, or Pontiac was sold in January. Cadillac came very close to beating Lexus in January; Buick did. Ford Motor Company fared well on the mainstream side; Lincoln struggled however. Just 16.3% of all Chrysler Group sales were cars, all others were “light trucks” of one kind or another. The Fiat 500 will improve that number slightly.

Hyundai and Kia stand out as big winners, as usual. Though Hyundai’s year-over-year percentage increase wasn’t as positive as many automakers competing for U.S. sales, certain core models like the all-new 2011 Hyundai Elantra and still recently revamped Hyundai Sonata fared very well in January. This must bode well for a time when, you’d assume, consumers will start steering towards cars instead of SUVs and crossovers.

U.S. sales figures for every brand are in the table below. The January 2011 label will be a hive of activity over the next couple weeks as GoodCarBadCar.net releases reams of auto sales data, so keep checking back.